The ZAPATA Group, Inc.

“Our corporate values are Trust, Integrity, and Quality,” says Manuel, who serves as chairman and CEO. “These values are at the heart of everything we do, and they are the cornerstone of each employee’s approach to their work. We set high standards for ourselves, and we provide an environment where our talented professionals can meet the challenges our clients bring to us. We earn our clients’ trust by conducting our business with integrity and providing quality service every day.”

Over the years, ZAPATA has focused on military projects with more than 90 percent of its workload both past and present in support of military facilities and infrastructure worldwide. Some of the company’s projects have included high-security facilities, specialized training complexes, housing, dining halls, hangars, administrative buildings, ammunition manufacturing facilities, and airfields.

Manuel Zapata founded the ZAPATA Group in 1991 and over the years the company has grown and received many awards, including the U.S. Secretary of Defense Employee Support Freedom Award.

Highly trained workers at the ZAPATA Group focus on trust, integrity, and quality in everything they do.

The ZAPATA Group’s specialties include:

• Architecture and Engineering – ZAPATA has extensive architecture and engineering design and analysis experience. The team includes architects and engineers of all disciplines, providing a comprehensive team to meet facility challenges.
• Project and Construction Management – ZAPATA provides project management, owner’s representative, and construction management services to allow their clients to focus on their business while ZAPATA delivers the facilities and infrastructure they need to meet their mission requirements.
• Security and Protective Design – ZAPATA conducts security vulnerability assessments and threat analyses. They have expertise in identifying the strengths, weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and deficiencies to determine the overall resiliency of structures and security programs.
• Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit – ZAPATA provides structural and non-structural seismic evaluations and retrofit services. Their seismic experts, including PhD structural engineers, specialize in the design and analysis of structures to resist the effects of seismic forces.

ZAPATA has a long-standing track record of excellent service, performance, and delivery of complex and logistically challenging projects. “We have completed work at locations throughout North and South America, the Middle East, and the Pacific,” Manuel says. “We are committed to delivering successful projects on time and within budget – no matter where they are located.”

Manuel came to the U.S. in 1967 from Chile. He had studied civil engineering at the University of Chile, then earned a BS in mechanical engineering and an MBA from UNC Charlotte. He has taught business classes at Queens University and UNC Charlotte at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Manuel serves on the College of Engineering Board of Advisors, and the Belk College of Business Advisory Board at UNC Charlotte. He was inducted into the University’s Alumni Hall of Fame and received the Bonnie E. Cone Lifetime Achievement Award. Manuel has a long list of civic engagements having served on the boards of many civic and business organizations. Manuel’s wife, Karen, and their two sons, Brian and Malcolm, are all UNC Charlotte graduates. The Zapatas are big supporters of the school and have established several scholarships to benefit UNC Charlotte students.

The ZAPATA Group provides project management and construction management services for their clients.

The ZAPATA Group has a long record of delivering complex and logistically challenging projects.

The ZAPATA Group has received numerous awards, including the prestigious U.S. Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. This award is the highest honor presented to employers by the U.S. Department of Defense for their support of employees who are Active National Guard and Reserve members. It is given to companies that have proven over time that they go above and beyond federal requirements in support of their military employees.

Manuel is a member of the TowneBank Charlotte board and works closely with Stephen Heeseman, Myers Park market executive.

For more information, visit ZAPATAInc.com.